PAY THE RENT
71
to buy himself a lunch of
moules
and a long loaf. The afternoon
was quiet. And then Corbiere came in, Corbiere from the Cafe de
Jeunesse. Jean-Baptiste and Corbiere had their weekly game of chess.
"How," asked Corbiere, "is the mean old man with the snore?"
"Hush. He sleeps very lightly. He may wake up and hear you."
"He deserves to be told of his meanness. The meanest man in the
whole of Moubassin." Jean-Baptiste, having translated his queen's
bishop, looked up. A golden English girl on the street, laughing with
her young man. He said:
"Parental tyranny. He's kept me down all my life."
"Rebel. Get out. Make a life for yourself before it's too late."
Corbiere had sad drinker's eyes, flecked green.
"He's old, though. He needs me." Throughout the afternoon the
typewriter above had been clacking away.
"Ah, nonsense. He can afford help. A maid. A housekeeper.
Who," asked Corbiere, "is that typing away above?" He looked up,
showing an ill-shaven nap below his chin.
"Oh, some relative," said Jean-Baptiste vaguely. "He keeps on
typing away." And then, as though this were an inspiration tapped
into him from above, "Would you like to buy some wine? I could
let you have some cheap, very cheap."
"How cheap?"
"Well," said Jean-Baptiste, "how much would you give me for
that case there and that case there, and I've another two cases like
them in the cellar?"
"What's the catch?"
"There's no catch. It was you who said my father was mean."
Corbiere laughed. "I see. That's a good boy. You're learning. I
gain and you gain and the old man doesn't really lose. He's too old
to worry about losing. Well now, let me see." He narrowed his eyes
and looked around. "For that lot there and that lot there -" He
waved at the dusty cases of a dozen behind the counter. "And you
say you have another two in the cellar? Well, I'd say - Let me
see -"
"Let's put it this way," said Jean-Baptiste. "I want one hundred
and sixty new francs."
"Oh, right," said Corbiere briskly. "That makes it a lot easier."
And he got up, the chess-game unfinished, to look around. Finally
